I'm giving the Browns a grade of B for this year's draft, mainly because of the character risks involved with their top three selections -- Baylor nose tackle Phil Taylor, Pitt defensive end Jabaal Sheard and North Carolina wide receiver Greg Little.

Both Taylor and Sheard seemed to straighten up their lives after college arrests. Taylor's came at a fraternity function that got him kicked out of Penn State in 2008. The police report on Sheard's fight last July when he came to a teammate's defense and ending up going through the glass window of an art gallery with the man with whom he was fighting is filled with distressing aspects of him resisting arrest, but he was elected a team captain. Little was suspended for all of last season after taking improper benefits from agents. He also carries a diva reputation.

Colt McCoy is the Browns' starting quarterback and Seneca Wallace signed a three-year, $9 million contract on March 3 to be his backup. The comments made by Browns president Mike Holmgren about the position seem to indicate Jake Delhomme's days in Cleveland may soon be over unless he agrees to a pay cut.

In 2011, Delhomme is set to make $5.4 million, way too high a salary for a third-stringer. Wallace, a nine-year veteran, is well versed in the West Coast offense the Browns are preparing to install.

Clemson defensive end Da'Quan Bowers, at one point projected as the first overall pick in the draft, remains available because of a serious knee issue.

He had surgery in January to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee that kept him from working out at the combine. Pro Football Weekly's Nolan Nawrocki said some league executives believe Bowers could need microfracture surgery.

While I've written since January that I wanted North Carolina defensive end Robert Quinn for the Browns at No. 6, it appears they will take a wide receiver (A.J. Green of Georgia or Julio Jones of Alabama) or a cornerback (Patrick Peterson of LSU or Prince Amukamara of Nebraska) with their first selection. President Mike Holmgren seems especially mindful of the draft day gaffes made by previous regimes and will preach making a safe choice, at least on day one.

With their eight selections, here's what (and sometimes whom) I would like the Browns to come out of this draft with:

Proving that you can bet on anything, Bookmaker.com has set odds on whether Ohio State football coach Jim Tressel will survive an NCAA investigation into his cover-up of his players' acceptance of illegal benefits.

The website set odds on what will happen to Tressel in 2011. It also shows percentages on the likehood of four options occuring.

Browns players Joshua Cribbs, Ben Watson and Reggie Hodges were unable to work out or speak to the coaching staff when they reported to the headquarters in Berea this morning, just the first bizarre day in what could be the most history-making week in league history.

While the NFL seeks a stay after Judge Susan Nelson's ruling lifted the lockout Monday, league spokesman Greg Aiello told the NFL Network's Jason LaCanfora, "We need a few days to sort this out.''

Former NFL coach Jon Gruden, now an analyst for ESPN and a member of the Monday Night Football broadcast crew, is flying to Columbus Wednesday to spend some time at Ohio State's spring football practice.

Asked during a Tuesday conference call if he thought OSU's Terrelle Pryor could play quarterback in the NFL, Gruden said, "I'll have a better feel for that after I sit down and watch them. But let me say this: The quarterbacks I'm seeing coming through here in the last few years are getting bigger, stronger, and they're getting abnormally large. When you look at the size of (Tim) Tebow, the size of Cam Newton, now you're talking about Terrelle Pryor, Blaine Gabbert, Ryan Mallett, if you get with the right coach who can cater an offense to Terrelle Pryor's ability....''

Thanks to the backing of Browns fans, running back Peyton Hillis continues his stunning run of upsets in voting to be on the cover of EA Sports' Madden NFL 12.

Hillis has reached the finals, facing Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Michael Vick. That matchup creates a whole different dynamic in the voting, with a possible backlash from animal lovers still seething over Vick's running of an illegal dog-fighting ring that sent him to prison.

An interesting post on CSNPhilly.com about the Philadelphia Eagles' running back corps touts the performance of former Cleveland Brown Jerome Harrison.

The post goes so far to call it a steal that the Eagles swapped Harrison last Oct. 14 for Mike Bell. Harrison backed up LeSean McCoy and finished with 239 yards on 40 carries (4.1) average and a TD for the Eagles, along with eight receptions for 43 yards. For 2010, Harrison totalled 330 yards (4.6 average), nowhere near his 862 yards (4.4 average) for the Browns in 2009.

Not many 19-win teams get a standing ovation when the season ends, but that's what happened Wednesday night at Quicken Loans Arena.

Part of that may have been for radio announcer Joe Tait, who was calling his final game. During the final minute, "My Way'' played over the stadium speakers as the Cavs dribbled out the clock. It was a touching tribute for a man who felt uncomfortable with all the hoopla over his retirement.

Perhaps I was being naive when I expected Wednesday's hearing in federal court to break the stalemate between the NFL owners and players and at least get them talking again. Or as Sports Illustrated's Don Banks suggested, I was merely uninformed. Sorry if I'm not glued to my laptop reading every detail of the legal maneuverings that might rob fans of all or part of the 2011 season.

But now District Judge Susan Richard Nelson said she will take two weeks to decide whether to grant the players' injunction request to lift the lockout. The outcome will likely be appealed to the Eighth Circuit Court in St. Louis. That means weeks and months of legal wrangling with no talks in sight.

Cavaliers general manager Chris Grant had to be relieved by Wednesday's announcement that Duke point guard Kyrie Irving intends to hire an agent and enter this year's NBA draft. But the underclassmen-going-pro news isn't as good on some other fronts.

North Carolina's duo of sophomore forward John Henson and junior center Tyler Zeller are returning to school. Ohio State freshman center Jared Sullinger is risking a top five selection in 2011 by returning for another year in Columbus. Some who have declared are not hiring agents to preserve their eligibility.

There's a touch of hippocracy in fans' moaning about the worst NCAA championship game in history following Connecticut's 53-41 triumph over Butler Monday night.

Part of what makes March Madness so appealing is the upsets. This year's tournament was thrilling to the end, with no No. 1 or No. 2 seeds in the Final Four for the first time since the seeding process began.

Entrepreneurs wasted no time making fun of Ohio State coach Jim Tressel's admitted cover-up in the Tattoogate scandal that resulted in a five-game suspension next season for the coach and five of his players. The NCAA could issue further sanctions for Tressel's role.

Smack Apparel has created a T-shirt that reads, 'Tressel's Tattoo and Pawn.'' According to a company release, Tressel is wearing his trademark vest, but sports tatoos and a heavy gold chain.

While it may not be etched in the memories of other Americans like the assassination of John F. Kennedy, I can still remember where I was when I heard that Martin Luther King Jr. had been gunned down 43 years ago today on the balcony of a hotel in Memphis, Tenn.

I was a seventh grader at Seneca High School in Louisville, Ky. and was distraught that I wasn't able to go to school after fainting in the bathroom on the morning of my birthday. I can't remember what kind of sickness I had, but I was laying in the darkness of my parents' bedroom listening to the radio when the report of King's death came in. While I may not have appreciated King's place in the world at that time, I had a hint of his significance or I wouldn't have been so dismayed to hear the news.

The third row seat in the Indians press box normally occupied by Bob Feller has been turned into a shrine to the Hall of Fame pitcher.

His spot bears a plaque on the wall reading "Bob Feller Memorial Press Box Seat.'' Encased in plexiglass is a Cleveland Indians Hall of Fame patch, the No. 19 patch worn on the Tribe uniforms this season, a miniature of Feller in full windup, a picture of Feller in the seat, a program from Thursday's memorial service and a cast of his hand gripping a baseball.